Live updates: PBSO hosts memorial service Tuesday to honor three deputies

WEST PALM BEACH — Law-enforcement officials, spiritual leaders, pilots and a congressman are all poised to participate in Tuesday’s public memorial service for the three Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputies killed in a roadside crash west of Wellington last month.

The service will begin at 9 a.m. with a procession of law-enforcement vehicles and feature remarks from the families of PBSO Cpl. Luis Paez, Deputy Ralph “Butch” Waller and Deputy Ignacio “Dan” Diaz at the South Florida Fairgrounds.

Palm Beach Post journalists and photographers are stationed along the procession route and at iThink Financial Amphitheatre, where U.S. Rep. Brian Mast and Sheriff Ric Bradshaw are expected to take the stage.

Check here throughout the morning and afternoon for updates, anecdotes and takeaways from Tuesday’s service.

‘The ultimate sacrifice’: Community reacts to crash that killed 2 deputies, injured a third

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Where to watch the PBSO procession for three fallen deputies

Vehicles will depart the Palms West Funeral Home in Royal Palm Beach at 9:30 a.m. The route will take them south on State Road 7 to Southern Boulevard, west on Southern to Crestwood Boulevard, north on Crestwood to Okeechobee Boulevard, east on Okeechobee to State Road 7, and finally south on State Road 7 to Weisman Way, taking them into the fairgrounds.

The public is invited to pay respects to the fallen deputies by lining the procession route. The suggested viewing areas include Okeechobee Boulevard from State Road 7 west to Crestwood Boulevard, and Crestwood Boulevard from Okeechobee Boulevard south to Southern Boulevard.

People are urged to take their places by 9 a.m.

PBSO anticipates traffic delays, warns drivers to take alternate routes

The procession will affect traffic in Royal Palm Beach, The Acreage, Loxahatchee, Loxahatchee Groves and Wellington, the sheriff’s office said. Some roads will close temporarily. Drivers should expect significant delays from 8 a.m. to noon, with additional delays through 3 p.m.

Suggested alternate routes include using Northlake Boulevard for eastbound travel out of the western communities, or the State Road 7 Extension to access eastbound Okeechobee Boulevard. From southbound Royal Palm Beach Boulevard, travel west on Okeechobee, then south on Crestwood to eastbound Southern.

Tuesday’s memorial service honors three deputies killed by Jeep driver

Cpl. Luis Paez, 58, was an avid photographer on the brink of retirement. Deputy Ralph “Butch” Waller, 54, was a fisherman once honored by his captain for his upstanding work ethic. Deputy Ignacio “Dan” Diaz, 51, helped convict a driver blamed for one of the deadliest car crashes in Riviera Beach’s history.

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Between them, the men had a combined 75 years of experience at the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. All three belonged to the agency’s traffic division, and each was sent airborne when a Jeep SUV veered off of Southern Boulevard on Nov. 21 and hit them where they stood, preparing to jumpstart a department-issued motorcycle.

The impact killed Paez and Waller and severely injured Diaz, who died four days after the crash.

The deputies had stopped on the side of the road at Southern Boulevard, near Seminole Pratt Whitney Road west of Wellington, to deal with a stalled PBSO patrol motorcycle. They were waiting for a fourth deputy to arrive with jumper cables when investigators say the SUV swerved off Southern to avoid hitting another car that had begun to decelerate.

The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating the crash, and its probe is expected to take until early 2025 to complete. No criminal charges were pending against the driver, a Pennsylvania resident, as of Tuesday.

Julius Whigham II, Valentina Palm and Hannah Phillips are reporters for The Palm Beach Post. Help support our work: Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Fallen PBSO deputies Paez, Waller and Diaz honored at memorial service

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